Pledge: Pres. Keith Wescovich
Prayer: Bob Chase
Song: Bill McLaughlin
Brents Card Game Winner: Joan Camire
Sergeants Report: Lee David
Welcome Guests: Exchange Student Clement Lefrancq from France, Exchange Student Caroline Bruno and Dr. Dick Reece
Raffle Winners: Bob Chase, Lee David, Brent Taylor
Happy Bucks
Announcements:
Keith: Next weeks meeting is a dinner meeting at Luigis Restaurant, no morning meeting. Please sign up with your meal preference. Please see the information in the members section concerning a fundraiser for Polio Plus at Mystic Marinelife Aquarium. Take advantage of a $3 admission coupon and help raise money for Polio Plus.
John Donnelly: Introduced Clement from France, who will be attending Old Lyme High School during his stay in the United States. Clement is sponsored by the Rotary Club La Bassee, France. John then introduced Caroline Bruno who lived in Spain mid July thru mid August under the Rotary Youth Exchange Program. Caroline's talk can be read in the Student Exchange section of this website.
Program: Bill Suits introduced Dr. Dick Reece
Dr. Reece, a former member of the Rotary Old Saybrook, talked about his newest book, Obama, Doctors and Health Reform. Dick is both critical and skeptical of the proposed healthcare reform bill for the following reasons:
1) American Culture and a basic distrust of government
2) Complexity of the current system - a rubix cube with many parts
3) Cost - technology extends life yet in order to control costs, healthcare will have to be rationed
4) Adverse consequences - using Massachusettes as an example where universal healthcare exists, uninsured has decreased from 8% to 3% - a good thing but costs are up and people voted 3-1 that quality is down.
Our country is so vast, and sections so diverse, it will be very difficult to set up a homogenized system. Minnesota has huge practices, with group practices typically composed of 100-150 physicians. In Oklahoma, practices tend to be very small. There is currently a lack of primary care physicians but the problem will get much worse because specialists earn double what GP's earn. The elderly have given Obama a 35% approval rating out of concerns that they will lose coverage. Under the new plan the young will be mandated to purchase health insurance. Computers will become ubiquitous and records will be more easily shared to improve outcomes.
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